Liz Truss and Boris Johnson join Tory wind farm rebellion

Boris Johnson and Liz Truss are backing an effort to overturn England's effectual prohibition connected onshore upwind farms, a Conservative MP has said.

Former curate Simon Clarke said the ex-prime ministers were supporting his bid to unbend restrictions done the Levelling Up Bill.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has scrapped a determination by predecessor Ms Truss to unbend the rules.

He has said helium wants to prioritise gathering turbines offshore instead.

Mr Clarke has tabled an amendment to the Levelling Up Bill that would overturn a readying clampdown introduced by erstwhile PM David Cameron successful 2015.

A spokesperson for Mr Johnson has confirmed to the BBC helium supports the amendment. Ms Truss has been approached for comment.

In a tweet, Mr Clarke - who was levelling up caput nether Ms Truss - said his amendment had recovered enactment "right crossed the Conservative Party".

The determination would let caller turbines with section consent, and represented a "pro-growth, pro-green argumentation astatine a clip erstwhile we request both," helium added.

It is the latest rebellion faced by Mr Sunak implicit the Levelling-Up Bill's readying measures.

When helium was premier minister, Mr Johnson published an energy strategy successful May that ruled retired "wholesale changes" to the readying strategy for onshore wind.

It said the authorities would consult a "limited fig of supportive communities" astir allowing caller turbines successful speech for little vigor bills.

Earlier this month, Labour person Sir Keir Starmer said his enactment would assistance the prohibition if it wins powerfulness astatine the adjacent wide election, which is expected to instrumentality spot successful 2024.

Labour's projected readying changes see removing a proviso that allows a azygous person's objection to halt an application.

Sir Keir said not backing onshore upwind was a "national enactment of self-harm, choking disconnected our economical potential".

Asked astir the prohibition earlier this month, Mr Sunak told MPs the authorities wanted to absorption connected offshore alternatively than onshore wind.

"It is close that we bring radical with america arsenic we modulation to nett zero," helium said.

"The worst happening we tin bash is alienate communities if we privation to really present connected our clime commitments."